Music that inspiring people to go on adventurous journeys: A single melody can make you dream of forgotten temples, glowing deserts, wild forests, and the faces of people you haven’t met yet.
Photo. A single melody can make you dream of forgotten temples, glowing deserts, wild forests, and the faces of people you haven’t met yet. Generated by DALL·E 2 - Chat GTP4 from OpenAI.
Music has the power to unlock our deepest wanderlust. I like listen to songs that remind me why I travel so much: to feel alive, to learn, to connect, and to discover the world beyond our routines.
Think about sitting alone, quite, sipping your wine, just listen to these songs and imagine what would happen if you took a few steps beyond what’s familiar - how wonderful it could be. Each song feels like a small invitation.
I travel to achieve new experiences, but also to change my point of view.
The familiar feels too small. The world beyond is calling. All these songs are about stepping out of the everyday world. In all of them, travel or movement is symbolic:
Not just physical travel, but:
- changing identity
- changing direction in life
- breaking out of old patterns
- choosing growth over comfort
The inner journey is the real journey.
Even the most “travel-like” songs here aren’t really about places. In general I think the message in many of the songs is about rediscovering the world with open eyes. The artists are seeking for something new in their life. Some songs don’t just describe journeys - they plant the idea of a place in your head that doesn’t exist yet. Then they dare you to go find it.
Here are my selected list of songs that really make me take off:
- “Solsbury Hill” by Peter Gabriel: leaving a former life behind after a personal awakening - spiritual experience atop Solsbury Hill in Somerset, England.
- "Passenger" by Iggy Pop: Night drives, unknown cities, drifting and discovering.
- "Born to be wild" by Stephen Wolf: feel free - the roads open. The song is an anthem of freedom, rebellion, and living life on your own terms. It celebrates breaking away from rules, routines, and expectations, and choosing adventure over safety. The biker/highway imagery is symbolic. It’s not just about motorcycles - it’s about movement, escape, and not being tied down. The road is the possibility. It became iconic through the film Easy Rider, which cemented it as the ultimate symbol of road freedom, counterculture, and the thrill of choosing your own path.
- "Once in a Lifetime" by Talking Heads: the meaning isn’t found in routine - it’s discovered when we step out of it and explore the world with fresh eyes.
- “Ends of the Earth” by Lord Huron: Literally about going to the ends of the world to feel alive.
- “Riders on the Storm” by The Doors: The road as mystery and danger - moving into the unknown.
- “Fast Car” by Tracy Chapman: Dreaming of escape from a small, stuck life. Hope and realism in one song.
- “Born to Run” by Bruce Springsteen: Not just fast cars - wanting a bigger life than the one you’re in.
- “Caribbean Blue” by Enya: floating away from reality into calm, dreamlike landscapes - floating across sky-blue seas and peaceful landscapes.
- “Sailing” by Road Stewart: It’s the slow, reflective journey - the kind where you’re alone with your thoughts, horizon in front of you, wind in your face. It’s about longing, distance, and the deep pull toward something, or someone meaningful. The sea becomes a metaphor for life’s journey.
- “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” by the Beatles: stepping into an imaginary world, becoming “someone else”. Passport to the news world. It band`s idea was: pretend to be another band, free from expectations, free from routines. This song and the whole album become a journey of imagination, a creative adventure far beyond the familiar roads of daily life.
- “See the World” by The Kooks: not settling too early, needing to experience life.
These songs remind me that every journey is also a human story. The road, the hill, the city at night, the sea, the imagined band persona - they’re all metaphors for transformation.
They’re all about that moment when you realize your current life isn’t wrong - but it’s not enough anymore.
Especially I am fascinated by the Beatles song “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” where they invent alter egos to escape who they’re “supposed” to be.
The song “See the World” by The Kooks is about loving someone while still needing freedom. “Seeing the world” means growing, exploring, and finding yourself before settling down. The pain comes from knowing both choices matter - and that choosing one means losing the other.
The song pull between settling down and the urge to go out and experience life. The singer wants to “see the world” - not just travel, but live more fully, freely, and on his own terms before committing to something, especially when it comes to relationship.
The title “See the World” is actually a metaphor for exploring life, making mistakes, discovering who you are, and not being tied down too early. There’s someone he cares about, but he’s honest: he’s not ready to settle. He doesn’t want to promise forever when he still feels the need to explore.
Fear of regret:
A big emotional driver is:
“If I don’t go now, will I regret it later?”
The song captures that restless feeling many people have when they’re young (or at a turning point in life).
Honesty, not rejection.
It’s not “I don’t care about you.”
It’s more: “I care, but I’m not ready to stop living my own life yet.” A lot of us recognize that tension between:
- security vs freedom
- love vs independence
- staying vs leaving
That’s why the song feels both hopeful and a little bittersweet.
Another song that not are directly related to travel, but also can spark lust for new experiences to far off-places is: "Once in a Lifetime" by Talking Heads. It`s is about the existential shock of waking up to the reality of one's own life, realising how one has been sleepwalking through it until this moment. It questions the routines, habits, and patterns that quietly shape everyday life. It reminds us that meaning isn’t found in routine - it’s discovered when we step out of it and explore the world with fresh eyes.
Songs That Will Make You Want to Travel - Video presentation on Youtube on the channel MS Mojo.
According to the publisher: "The ultimate playlist that will ignite your wanderlust and inspire you to explore the world. From folk-inspired tunes to classic rock anthems, these songs capture the spirit of adventure and the thrill of the open road. Our list includes iconic tracks like "Born to Be Wild," "Take Me Home, Country Roads," and "Life Is a Highway," as well as hidden gems that will make you want to book your next trip. Whether you're dreaming of sailing the seas, cruising down country roads, or exploring bustling cities, these songs will transport you to far-off places and fuel your desire to travel."
These songs don`t sell postcard travel. All these songs are about stepping out of the life you were handed and into a life you choose. They celebrate the moment when the world feels bigger than your routines, and you decide to follow that pull — whether it leads you up a hill, onto the road, through neon-lit cities, across imaginary seas, or into a new version of yourself.
Why these songs matter
Travel, for me, isn’t about arrival. It’s about that moment when the familiar loosens its grip, and the world suddenly feels bigger than my daily routines. That’s where the real journey begins.
Adventure travel isn’t only about movement - it’s about meaning. Music helps you tune into the world with open eyes, open ears, and an open heart. The right song can make a sunrise unforgettable, a desert mystical, or a city street feel like destiny.
Did you get adventure vibes now?
These are the songs that don’t just inspire travel. They demand it.
Stein Morten Lund, 25th November 2025
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